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WATER, 



ENGINEERING CONSTRUCTION. 



A HISTORICAL SKETCH 

>F [T? AiTIJc AIM >\ rO I'M ,| . :.. . : ..... 

REMOVAL Ol SAND-BAR LND . : ,LUVIAL DEPOSIT 



DETAILED ACCOUNT 01 . E PLOYED IN DRIVING SE 

PILES FOR PIER ' [Nil , THE HARBORS 

TWO RIVERS, AHNAPE AND STURGEON BAY, 

W [SCONSIN. 



L. Y. 8CHERMERHORN, C. E 



HENRY M. ROBERT 



Majoi: 01 i: 



U. 8. Awi 



\A ASHINGT 

GOVERNMENT PRTN'l : ^i 
1881. I 



ENGINEER DEPARTMENT, U. S. ARMY. ,,os A 




THE "WATEE-JET 



AID TO ENGINEERING CONSTRUCTION. 



A HISTORICAL SKETCH 

OF ITS APPLICATION TO THE SINKING OF PILES AND CAISSONS, AND THE 
REMOVAL OF SAND-BAES AND OTHER ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS; 

EMBRACING 

A DETAILED ACCOUNT OF THE METHOD EMPLOYED IN DRIVING SHEET- 
PILES FOR PIER-LINING AT THE HARBORS OF 

TWO RIVERS, AHNAPEE, AND STURGEON BAY, 

WISCONSIN. 



BY 



L. Y. SCHERMERHORN, C. E. ? 

VNDEK THE DIRECTION OF 

HENRY M. ROBERT, 

Major of Engineers, U. S. Army. 




WASHINGTON: 
GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE. 

1881. 



m 



TC/?s 

■ IAS 

mi 



(,-Hmo 



United States Engineer Office, 

31ihvaukee } Wis., April 6, 1881. 

Sir: I have the honor to forward herewith a report on the use of the 
water-jet by Assistant Engineer L. Y. Schermerhorn, with the recom- 
mendation that it be published. 

In connection with using the water-jet in driving sheet-piling for a lining 
to the pile piers at Two Rivers Harbor ; Wisconsin, in 1878, I had occa- 
sion to investigate the question as to the various uses to which the water- 
jet had been applied in civil engineering. Since that time I have used the 
water-jet at two other harbors, Ahnapee and Sturgeon Bay, with good re- 
sults so far as can be now seen. Having received several inquiries for 
information upon the subject, it occurred to me that a brief statement of the 
results of these investigations and of the experience at the works mentioned 
might be of sufficient value to justify publication. 

Assistant Engineer L. Y. Schermerhorn has had for years a deep inter- 
est in the use of the water-jet, and to his intelligent oversight of the work, 
assisted by Mr. Charles Crosman, overseer, is due the fact that the United 
States did at the same expense nearly 50 per cent, more work in driving 
sheet-piling than was done by able contractors at the same place last fall, 
both using the water-jet. The paper prepared by Mr. Schermerhorn gives 
the methods of driving piles by the use of the water-jet in sufficient detail 
to enable anyone else to use the jet intelligently from the start. He has 
also placed in the paper much valuable information as to the use of the jet 
for other purposes than driving sheet-piling. 

In the first part of the paper references in foot-notes are made occa- 
sionally to letters. These letters were in answer to a circular sent out by me 
in 1879 to various civil engineers and to all officers of the United States 
Corps of Engineers in charge of works, asking for information on this sub- 
ject coming within the range of their personal knowledge. 



From this paper it will be seen that while the water-jet is of great value 
in sand, its value is greatly reduced if there is any gravel or clay mixed 
with the sand, and that where there is much gravel it is practically useless. 
Very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

Henry M. Robert, 
Major of Engineers, U. S. Army. 
The Chief of Engineers, U. S. Army, 

Washington, D. C. 



Office of the Chief of Engineers, 
United States Army, 
Washington, D. C, April 12, 1881. 
Respectfully submitted to the honorable the Secretary of War, with 
recommendation that this paper be printed, and that 500 copies be obtained 
for the use of the Corps of Engineers on the usual requisition. 

John G. Parke, 
Acting Chief of Engineers. 



Approved : 

By order of the Secretary of War 



April 14, 1881. 



H. T. Crosby, 

Chief Clerk. 



THE WATER-JET AS AN AID TO ENGINEERING CONSTRUCTION. 



United States Engineer Office, 

3fihvaukee, Wis., April 6, 1880. 

Sir: Inquiries for information concerning the details followed, and re- 
sults obtained, in the use of the water-jet as an aid in engineering construc- 
tions, have led to the following compilation of methods and facts concerning 
its application. 

When a sufficiently powerful stream of water (jet) is forced into sand, 
silt, mud, or soft clay, a rapid disintegration and removal of the material 
ensues when the action of the jet is confined to quite limited areas; and an 
increased fluidity of the earthy mass with a partial excavation when not so 
confined. In either case the action of the water-jet facilitates the passage 
of piles, cylinders, caissons, or similar constructions through earthy material. 

A compilation of all known applications of the water-jet indicates that its 
first use arose from the difficulties experienced in obtaining suitable founda- 
tions for light-houses and wharves on the sandy shores of the Gulf and 
Atlantic Southern States. In several cases the engineering difficulties of 
the occasion have led to the use of the water-jet without the user being 
aware of its previous application to similar difficulties. This has led to 
claims of originality from several independent sources. In the examina- 
tions upon which this report is based, the earliest determined use occurred 
in 1852, in sinking piles for wharf and warehouse at Decrow's Point, Mata- 
gorda Bay, Texas ; and seems to have arisen from a suggestion made by 
Lieut. Geo. B. McClellan, U. S. E., who was at the time chief engineer 
of the Department of Texas, and in charge of surveys of rivers and harbors 
on the coast of Texas. 

The method adopted is described by an eye-witness, Mr. A. J. Moore, as 
follows : * 

* In February, 1852, * * * a resident of Decrow's Point was building a wharf 
and warehouse and found it difficult to sink the piles in the hard sand bottom. Captain Mc- 
Clellan advised him to get a hand-pump and pump them down ; which be did, and it worked 
finely. * * * The method was as follows : * * * water was forced through an or- 
dinary rubber hose, with a piece of gas-pipe on the end for a nozzle. The nozzle was placed 
close to the point of the pile on the bottom, the jet of water * * * scouring the sand 
away from the pile and making a hole, in which the pile sunk rapidly. 

* Letter of Mr. A. J. Moore, May 6, 1879. 



6 

In 1854, in sinking piles for the foundation of Pungateague Light, Ches- 
apeake Bay, Mr. Charles Pontez, under direction of Major H. Bache, 
U. S. T. E., suggested the use of the water-jet. Mr. Pontez thus describes 
the method : * 

The piles were hollow, of cast-iron, 18 feet long, 7 inches in diameter, with a trumpet- 
shaped base flaring out to 3 feet in diameter. A 1-inch iron pipe, which passed through the 
pile, was conuected by a hose with a hand force-pump. By this means a pile was sunk 11 
feet in 2} hours ; * * * 11 piles were sunk in three days. 

Between 1854 and 1861 Lieut. "W. H. Stevens, IT. S. E., made use of 
the water-jet for sinking sheet and bearing piles in the construction of jet- 
ties for the protection of Fort Livingston, Louisiana; for the sinking of 
wooden piles for platform, and screw-piles for foundation for a light-house 
at Half-Moon Shoals, Matagorda Bay, Texas, and at Ship Shoals, Louisi- 
ana ; and for sinking wooden piles for the foundation of a wharf and ware- 
house in connection with the fortifications at Pelican Spit, Galveston Bay, 
Texas. It has been impossible to obtain the details of the methods of 
application of the water-jet at the foregoing works; but such details as are 
obtainable indicate that the water-jet was not attached to the piles. 

In 1856 James Brunlee used the water-jet as an aid in sinking cast-iron 
piles for the foundations of the Kent and Leven Viaducts over Morecambe 
Bay, England. f The piles were hollow, pointed, and provided with a disk 
near their lower ends. A wr ought-iron pipe 2 inches in diameter was 
carried down the inside of the piles, and through the ends to a distance of 
about 2 feet below the point of the pile. The top of the pipe was connected 
by a flexible hose with the force-pump. By these appliances the water 
was forced down the pipe and into the sand, which being loosened and 
rendered quite fluid permitted the easy descent of the piles. The guide 
piles forming the approach to the draw-bridge were baulks of timber, 
14 inches square, fitted with cast-iron sockets having disks 2 J feet in 
diameter. These piles were sunk by the same method as the cast-iron 
piles, except that the water-jet was carried down the outside of the pile to 
its point. Since this application of the water-jet by Mr. Brunlee, its use 
has been quite frequent in the construction of foundations for light-houses 
on the coasts of England and France. 

In 1862, 5,000 wooden piles were placed by Mr. J. AY. Glenn across 
the channel to Mobile Harbor for the purpose of obstructing the entrance 
of the Federal fleet. The general details were as follows : J 

* Letter from Mr. C. Pontez, April 8, 1879. Scientific American, July 13, 1878. Ex. Doc. 
10, 34th Cong., 1st session. 

t Permanent way of European Railways, page 43. Proceedings Inst, of Civil Engineers, 
vol. xvii, page 442. Wood's "Mahan/' page 229. Spoil's Dictionary of Engineering, page 
2643. Vose's Manual for Eailway Engineers, page 305. Van Nostrand's Engineering Mag- 
azine, April, 186S, page 360. Trautwine's Engineer's Pocket Book, page 325. Cast and 
Wrought-Iron Bridges, by William Humber. 

X Van Nostrand's Engineering Magazine, 1874, pages 360 and 513. Scientific American, 
July 13, 1878, page 20. Supplement, No. 141, September 14. 1878. 



The piles were from 20 to 30 feet in length, with a diameter of from 1& 
to 30 inches. They were sunk 12 to 20 feet in the sand, and their tops 
cut off a little below the surface of the water. A steam fire-engine placed 
on the deck of a steamer supplied the necessary force-pump. At the end 
of about 50 feet of hose an ordinary lj-inch fire-nozzle was placed. At 
the lower end of the pile two iron staples were driven, in which the 
nozzle was secured while the pile was being sunk. The pump was started,, 
and the pile, with the jet attached, lowered to the bottom, into which it 
quickly sunk to the required depth. The hose and nozzle were freed by 
drawing them to the surface before the pump was stopped. The rate of 
penetration is stated as "about 1 foot per second." The depth of water 
was about 8 feet ; and the bottom is described as being " for a depth of 20 
feet a deposit of sand such as is common to the Gulf coast." 

In the Gulf States palmetto piles were found to quite effectually resist 
the ravages of the teredo; but the wood is too soft to withstand the blows 
of the pile-driver. By using the water-jet the necessity for the use of the 
pile-hammer was removed, and palmetto piles became available. This 7 
taken in connection with the favorable results previously obtained by 
Lieut. "VV. H. Stevens, led to quite a general use of the water-jet in sinking 
both round and sheet piles at various points along the Atlantic and Gulf 
coasts. Application of the principle was made by Major P. C. Hains, XL 
S. E., in 1872, in the construction of the foundations for Thimble Light^ 
Virginia, and in 1873 in the construction of range lights at the mouth of 
the Patapsco River, Maryland; by Capt. A. N. Damrell, U. S. E., in 
1873, in placing piles, for beach protection, at Fort Gaines, Mobile Bay 7 
Alabama, and in 1877 for sheet-piling for sea-walls at Fort Morgan,, 
Mobile Bay; by Capt. C. E. L. B. Davis, U. S. E., in 1874-75 and ? 77, in 
the construction of sheet-piling at Galveston Bay, Texas. 

From 1867 to 1869, O. Chanute, C. E., chief engineer of the Kansas* 
City bridge, made use of the water-jet* in sinking wooden bearing-piles,, 
by passing an iron pipe along the side of the pile and attached thereto,, 
allowing the jet to discharge near the point of the pile. Mr. Chanute also* 
used compound piles, formed by bolting together four square pieces of 
timber, one corner of each piece having been chamfered, and these cham- 
fered edges placed together, leaving a hole along the axis of the pik 
through which the jet was forced. The water-jet was used, also, in sinking 
the caisson for pier No. 4, by arranging jets so as to discharge at the lowei 
edge of the caisson; also by independent jets directed by divers against 
special points of resistance. 

In 1868, Mr. T. J. "Whitman, C. E., chief engineer of the Saint Louis 

* Vose's Manual for Railway Engineers, pages 315, 317. Van Nostrand's Engineering 
Magazine, vol. iii, page 406. Monograph on Kansas City Bridge, by O. Chanute. N. Y„ 
Van Nostraiid. 




8 

water-works, made the following application of the water-jet in sinking 
sheet-piling for the coffer-dam about the foundations of the river engines : * 

A 2-inch iron pipe was fastened to the side of the pile ; the lower end of the pipe was con- 
tracted to a f-inch opening. The pipe was bent so as to bring the nozzle just to the point of 
the pile. The pipe was connected with the pump by a 3-inch hose, through which water was 
forced with the greatest pressure obtainable. A second method of application was to bore a 
hole from the point of the pile upward (along the axis of the pile) for about 2 feet, and a 
second hole from the side of the pile obliquely downward to intersect the first hole. The 
nozzle of the pipe was forced into the oblique hole and the water pumped as before. By this 
latter method the piles could be sunk much faster than by the first. 

Difficulty was found to exist in sinking the piles to the required depth, 
the cause of which, Mr. Whitman says, was as follows : 

When we excavated for the masonry the difficulty was made evident. The material was 
sand mixed with a considerable amount of gravel and some quite large stones. The pile 
would sink quite readily through the sand and fine gravel, but when it had passed through 
a certain amount of this material the gravel collected in a pocket about the foot of the pile 
and allowed the water to escape without displacing the material, so that the pile would sink 
no further. 

In 1870, E. D. Mason, C. E., chief engineer of the Hannibal bridge, 
Missouri, used the water-jet to clear away the sand from the piles so that 
they could be cut off below the river bottom ; also to generally remove 
deposits from about the foundations. f 

*"" In 1871, Capt. M. K. Brown, U. S. E., under direction of Lieut. Col. J. D. 
Ivurtz, U. S. E., made valuable application of the water-jet in sinking the 
iron screw-piles used in the construction of the piers at Lewes, Delaware. X 
The piles consisted of solid wrought-iron shafts from 5J to 8J inches in 
diameter, provided with cast-iron screws from 2. to 2 J feet in diameter. 
In attempting to screw the piles down they broke, from the extreme resist- 
ance of the material into which they were forced, before they had attained 
the necessary depth. Attempt was made to reduce the resistance by lead- 
ing a jet of water to the material underneath the flanges of the screw ; the 
prevalence of gravel and insufficient force of the pump led to unsatisfactory 
results. An examination of a broken screw led to the conclusion " that the 
greatest resistance encountered is on the upper surfaces of the (screw) flanges, 
and is doubtless due to the friction caused by the direct weight of the super- 
imposed cone of sand and to the opposition of a component of this weight 
to the motion of the screw-flanges. 7 ' 

It was thought that if a jet of water were forced on the upper surfaces of 
the screw-flanges it would accomplish the more complete liquidity of the 
sand above the screw, and change the volume of pressure on the flanges 
from that of an inverted cone to that of a cylinder whose diameter would 
be equal to that of the smaller face of the frustrum. Streams of water 
through two lj-inch iron pipes were led directly upon the flanges and the 

* Letter of T. J. Whitman, September 15, 1879. 
t Van Nostrand'a Engineering Magazine, vol. v. page 303. 

t Report* of the Chief of Engineers, U. S. A., 1872, 759, 770; 1873, 860, 801 : 1874, II, 131 ; 
1879, 447. 



hitherto great resistance to screwing down the piles at once ceased. A 
subsequent determination of resistances to screwing down the piles de- 
veloped the fact that nine-tenths of the resistance disappeared upon the 
proper application of the water-jet to the upper surfaces of the screw- 
flanges. Through the aid of this application of the water-jet it became 
possible "to settle the screw-piles as deeply as was deemed necessary in a 
bottom where, without the jet, the strongest iron screws were broken as 
though they had been of glass, when main force alone was used in an un- 
successful effort to sink them more than 4 feet." From the experience 
gained on this work it was inferred that with the aid of the jet there would 
be no great difficulty in penetrating to a depth of 20 feet, since the last foot 
of work in penetrating 12 feet was accomplished, seemingly, as easily as the 
first foot of the same stratum. Subsequently, when it became necessary to 
remove some of the piles, the application of the water-jet to the upper face 
of the screw rendered its removal quite easy, when previous efforts by back- 
ing the screw or raising the pile bodily had proved unsuccessful. 

In 1873, C. C. Martin, C. E., superintending engineer of the New York 
and Brooklyn bridge, made the following application of the water-jet in 
placing sheet-piling :* The sheet-plank were 8 by 2 inches, and it was 
found that from 30 to 40 blows were required to drive a plank 1 inch. 
It was then concluded that the water-jet might aid the descent of the sheet- 
plank. A f-inch hose was attached to a {-inch iron pipe about 3 feet in 
length. This pipe was introduced along the side of the sheet-plank, and 
the water from a city hydrant — with a pressure of about 50 pounds per 
square inch — was turned on ; this loosened the sand, and the pile -was 
driven easily. The following comparative results will show the effective 
action of the water-jet. A sheet-plank without the aid of the jet required 
392 blows to drive the plank 10 inches in 18 minutes; while by the aid 
of the jet another plank, similarly placed, required 93 blows to drive the 
plank 17J inches in 2 minutes. 

In 1874, G. Jordan, C. E., in the construction of the piers for a bridge 
over the Tensas River, Alabama, made use of large iron cylinders from 4 
to 6 feet in diameter, which were sunk to the required depth by the aid of 
a series of jets applied concentrically with the inner sides of the cylinders 
and discharging from vertical pipes at the lower edge of the cylinders. f 

In 1875, Mr. C. Fitzsimmons applied the water-jet to facilitate the 
sinking of the shafts of the Fullerton Avenue conduit, Chicago.j The 
brick-work was built on an iron shoe and sunk from the surface of the 
ground ; at times the pressure of the sand against the sides of the shaft was 
so great as to prevent its sinking. The application of the water-jet along 

* Letter of Mr. C. C. Martin, January 31, 1879. 

t Van Nostrand's Engineering Magazine, 1874, page 360. 

t Letter of C. Fitzsimmons, February 27, 1879. 



10 

the sides of the shaft diminished the resistance and greatly facilitated its 
descent. 

In 1877, Messrs. Stocklin & Vetelart, contractors for the enlargement 
of Calais Harbor, France, used the water-jet in combination with an ordi- 
nary pile-driver under the following circumstances :* Guide-piles 9 inches 
square and placed 6 J feet apart were driven ten feet into the bottom; be- 
tween the guide-piles sheathing planks, 4 inches thick, were driven to a 
depth of 8 feet. The pile-driver ram weighed 1,200 pounds and could 
be given a fall of six feet. The water was injected from two pipes, one on 
each side of the pile, their orifices being about one foot below the point of 
the pile. The pipes were kept as nearly vertical as possible and in con- 
stant motion. Without the aid of the jet 185 blows were required to drive 
a guide-pile 10 feet, and 900 blows were required to drive a panel (6 J feet) 
of sheet-plank to a depth of 8 feet. The time required for pitching and 
driving a panel was 8 hours and 36 minutes. By the aid of the water-jet 
the number of blows required for a panel was from to 50, and the time 
1 hour and 9 minutes. The system was said to have the additional advan- 
tage of permitting the sheathing to be placed much closer and in better 
alignment than could be done by the hammer alone. 

At many of the lake harbors the piers, extending from the shore-line to 
about the 12-foot curve, consist of two parallel rows of round piles, 14 feet 
apart. The piles of each row are driven as closely together as possible, 
cut off at the surface of the water, and surmounted by a timber superstruc- 
ture about 5 feet in height. The filling of these piers consists of brush, 
slabs, and stone. Experience has demonstrated that such piers readily per- 
mit the passage of sand through them from the outside into the channel 
between the piers, rendering necessary some subsequent device to make 
them sand-tight. The harbors at Two Rivers, Ahnapee, and Sturgeon 
Bay, Lake Michigan, were formed in part by piers constructed as above 
described. In 1878, Maj. H. M. Robert, U. S. E., whose district em- 
braces the above harbors, after a careful examination of possible expedients 
for rendering them sand-tight, decided to place sheet-piling along the side 
of the pile-piers. The work was begun in the fall of 1878 and continued 
during the seasons of 1879 and ? 80. The amount of pile-pier revetted 
with sheet-piling was nearly 4,100 linear feet, and it is believed that the 
methods adopted and the results obtained justify detailed description. The 
general method of construction was as follows : f The sheet-pile revetment 
consisted of a double row of plank, each 3 inches in thickness, 12 inches 
in width, and 18 feet in length; the plank breaking joints with each other 
and extending from the top of the superstructure to 13 feet below the 
water-surface; secured to the pile-pier by an oak wale 6 by 12 inches, 

* Journal Franklin Institute, 1878, page 275. Ann. des Ponts et Chaussees, 5th Series, 
vol. xv. page 74. 
t See cut, Report of the Chief of Engineers 1879, page 1512. 



11 

placed at the water-surface, and a pine wale 8 by 1 2 inches, along the top of 
the superstructure; the wales were attached to the timber-work of the 
superstructure by 1 J-inch screw-bolts. The sheet-piling was generally placed 
along the harbor side of the piers. The general depth of water along the 
piers was from 2 to 11 feet, so that the plank was sunk from 11 to 2 feet 
into the lake bottom ; the material into which the sheet-piling was driven 
was generally sand — in a few instances small quantities of clay or gravel 
occurred. Since the object of the sheet-pile revetment was to render the 
piers impervious to sand, it was of the first importance that the sheet-piles 
should be in intimate contact, and free from the openings which occur in 
sheet-piling placed by the usual methods. It was considered that the 
water-jet furnished a method for placing the sheet-piles so that they would 
be practically sand-tight. The results accomplished at Two Rivers, Ahna- 
pee, and Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, justify these anticipations. The work 
at Two Rivers was the first undertaken, and was to a certain extent ten- 
tative. As the work progressed experience indicated modifications of the 
original conception, which grew into the methods used at Ahnapee and 
Sturgeon Bay, from which the best results were obtained. 

The following is derived from the report of Mr. Chas. Crosman, under 
whose local direction the work was carried on : 

The plant consisted of a vertical tubular boiler, with an attached engine having an 8 by 12 
inch cylinder, and giving about 130 revolutions per minute to a 42-inch driving-wheel. A 
No. 4 Holly rotary pump, with an 18-inch pulley, was attached by a belt to the driving-wheel 
of the engine, giving about 300 revolutions per minute to the pump. Tbe rotary pump was 
selected for the following reasons : 

(1.) Its small cost when compared with a direct-acting steam-pump of equal capacity. 

(2.) The action of the jet surcharged the water in the vicinity of the pump suction with 
sand ; this would have proved highly destructive to the cylinders of a direct-acting pump, or 
else rendered necessary a troublesome method of compensation. 

The rotary pump, by an easy and permanent device, allows for the wear incident to the 
use of sandy water. The pump was supplied with a 4-inch suction, and discharged through 
a 3-inch hose about 50 feet in length. The hose was provided with a nozzle 3 feet in length 
and 2 inches in diameter. 

The engine was provided with a hoisting drum capable of giving motion to an 1800-pound 
hammer, moving in the leaders 24 feet in height. The boiler, engine, pump, and pile-driver 
were mounted on a platform 12 feet wide and 24 feet in length, carried on wooden rollers 
which admitted of its being readily moved backward or forward along the top of the pier as 
occasion required. From the main platform a smaller platform, about 6 feet wide and 10 feet 
long, was suspended so as to be about 1 foot above the water-surface, allowing ready access 
to the face of the pier. 

The previously described nozzle was securely attached to the end of a pole about 2 inches 
in diameter and 18 feet in length; the pole being used to guide the jet into place and force it 
into the sand. 

For driving sheet-piles only, eight men were required,* stationed as follows. One man 
(a) on the pier, one man (6) on the main platform, four men (c, d, e, f) on the suspended 
platform. Everything being in readiness, a slides a plank from the pier into the water and 
passes it along to c, who hooks the hoisting line to it. In the mean time d passes the 
pole — with attached nozzle — to e, who presses it into the lake bottom at the place to be 

* The engineer and fireman are not designated by letters. 



12 

occupied by the sheet-plank. When the required depth has been reached by the jet, d takes 
the pole and raises the nozzle to about the natural bed of the lake; c gives the signal to b, 
who then raises the plank into position between the leaders by aid of the rope that passes to 
the winch-head of the hoisting engine ; e, with a cant-hook, keeps the face of the plank 
against the pier, while / presses its edge close to the edge of the plank last driven, in the 
*ame row; b lets the sheet-plank drop as far as it will into place, unhooks the hoisting line 
and steps upon the top of the sheet-pile to press it entirely down into place. Ordinarily his 
weight alone was sufficient to accomplish this, though sometimes it was necessary for one of 
the men on the suspended platform to assist him by pressing on the head of the sheet-pile 
with a handspike or lever; c then spikes the sheet-plank at the water-surface and near the 
top of the superstructure. While the next plank was coming, the platform was moved 
forward or backward as required by b, through the aid of blocks and falls leading to the 
winch-head of the engine. 

The jet became almost powerless when required to force its way through 
drift-wood, chips, sunken logs, or stone; and, since such obstructions 
generally existed along the side of the piers, it was found necessary to 
remove them by dredging a narrow cut close to the pier. No effort was 
made to utilize the increased depth of water obtainable immediately after 
dredging, since in sand clear of obstructions such as are mentioned above, 
the jet permits the placing of the sheet-plank in 8 feet of sand as readily 
as in a lesser depth. 

The sheet-piles did not generally require sharpening; experience de- 
veloping the fact that the piles were placed neither more rapidly nor in 
better position by being sharpened. The pile-hammer previously described 
was seldom used — not more than one plank in one hundred requiring its 
assistance. This adds largely to the value of the water-jet, since in driving 
sheet-piles by the hammer, oak, or timber equally capable of resisting the 
destructive effects of impact, would be required; by using the water-jet the 
necessity of the hammer is removed, and pine timber can be substituted for 
oak, reducing thereby the cost of this item about one-half. 

The following rates of progress were obtained by Mr. Crosman: 

Maximum number of sheet-piles driven in one day (ten hours) 196 

Minimum number of sheet-piles driven in one day (ten hours) 105 

Average number of sheet-piles driven in one day (ten hours) 130 

The following exceptional rates were obtained : 

August 9, 1880, 47 sheet-piles placed in one hour. 
August 10,1880, 150 sheet-piles placed in five hours. 

These piles were all 12 inches wide, 3 inches thick, and 18 feet in length, 
and sunk to an average depth in the sand of 8 feet. 

The following is a detailed statement of the entire cost, per linear foot, 
of revetting 2,012 linear feet of pile-pier at Ahnapee and Sturgeon Bay : 

Screw and drift-bolts, and spikes $0. 46 

Lumber 1. 59 

Labor, entire pay-rolls 0. 94 

Supplies, fuel, oil, waste, and small tools 0. 12 

Dredging to remove obstructions 0. 67 

.Superintendence, exclusive of office 0. 39 

Total cost per linear foot $4. 17 






13 

The foregoing does not include the cost of machinery or plant, which will 
be subsequently considered. 

The application of the item "labor" was as follows: 

Preparatory work in starting operations. 
Framing and handling timber. 
Riprapping sheet-pile revetment. 
Watchman and repairs. 
Driving sheet-piles. 

In the above statement of cost the item of "labor" amounted to 94 
cents per linear foot of pier revetted. Of this amount about 24, cents was 
applied to the subdivision "driving sheet-piles/' leaving 70 cents to be 
distributed among the other subdivisions. This reduction of the item 
"driving sheet-piling" to about one-quarter of the cost of all labor is 
believed to be largely due to the application of the water-jet in placing 
the sheet-piling. 

The prices paid for the material used were as follows : 

Screw and drift-bolts, and spikes, per pound 4-$- to 5 cents- 
Pine lumber, delivered, per M feet $12. 00 

Oak lumber, delivered, per M feet 30. 00 

Labor : One master carpenter, per month $80-00 

One engine-driver, per month 55. 00 

One carpenter, per day 2. 50 

Eight laborers, per day, each 1. 50 

One watchman, per day 1.50 

Dredging, per working hour 10. 00 

Superintendence, one overseer, per month 150. 00 

The engine and boiler and many of the small tools used had been pre- 
viously purchased for other work. The estimated cost of the entire plant,, 
if purchased especially for the work, would be about as follows: 

Boiler, with pile-driver engine attached $800. 00 

Rotary pump, with belt, pulleys, suction-pipe, and hose 325. 00 

Movable platform, with pile-driving hammer and leaders attached 250. 00 ! 

Blocks, rope, and tools 75. 00 ; 

Hoisting-drum and fixtures 150. 00 s 

$1,600.00 

A recent application of the water-jet was made by C. Macclonald, C. E., 
president of the Delaware Bridge Company, in building the iron ocean- 
pier at Coney Island. The following brief description * of the methods used 
and results obtained is of interest. The pier was built to furnish means 
of landing from steamers and to afford increased facilities for promenades 
at Coney Island beach. The pier was supported on hollow wrought-iron 
piles 8| inches outside diameter, metal J inch in thickness. The bases of 
the piles were provided with cast-iron disks 2 feet in diameter and 9 inches 
deep, through which was an opening 2 inches in diameter for the passage 
of the water-jet. The piles were sunk from 10 to 17 feet into the sand. 

* Monograph by C. Macdonald, C, E,, on "The Ocean-Pier at Coney Island." American 
Society of Civil Engineers. 



14 

In the operation of sinking the piles the water-jet was applied through a pipe 14- inches 
In diameter, extending through the pile and disk, and about 2 inches beyond. ~ * * 
The pumping plant consisted of a Worthington pump with a steam cylinder 12 by 8-J- inches, 
and a water cylinder 8$ by 7| inches. * * * Also a No. 6 Cameron pump with 
a 10 by 9 inch steam, and a 10 by 6 inch water cylinder. The suction-pipes were 4 inches in 
diameter and the discharging hose 3 inches in diameter. The boiler was upright, 42 inches 
in diameter, 8 feet high, and containing 62 tubes 2 inches in diameter. 

With the power above described it was found that piles could be driven in clear sand at 
the rate of 3 feet per minute to a depth of 12 feet; after that the rate of progress gradually 
diminished until at 18 feet a limit was reached beyond which it was impracticable to go with- 
out considerable loss of time. 

A few disks 24 feet in diameter were tried, but much more time was required in sinking 
them. One 3-foot disk caused a delay of six hours in sinking 15 feet through very uniform 
sand. 

The experiment was made — late in the progress of the work — of forcing 
the water directly through the pile instead of through the inner pipe, pre- 
viously referred to; so that the water from the pump was discharged from 
the bottom of the pile through a 2-inch opening. "In this case the pile 
sunk much more rapidly than before," and the pressure on the hose indi- 
cated that the resistance to discharge was materially reduced. 

Upon one or two occasions it became necessary to raise piles which, by mistake, had been 
driven to a greater depth than required and allowed to become firmly settled. This was ac- 
complished by passing a jet down and around the outside of the pile until the disk was 
reached, when the pile was easily raised by the blocks attached to the hoisting engine, and 
finally secured at the proper level. 

The limit of safe loading for piles of this character has been assumed to be 5 tons per square 
foot of disk. * * * Many of these piles sustain a load, due to structure alone, 
of 6.3 tons per square foot of disk; to this must be added the weight of moving masses of 
people and exceptional local loads, which have, in some cases increased the pressure upon 
the disk to 8 tons per square foot, without causing any settlement which can be detected by 
the eye. This extreme practice is not recommended where absolute rigidity of foundation is 
required. 

It frequently happened in sinking, that the pile would bring up on some 
tenacious material which was assumed to be clay, and through which the 
jet unaided could not be made to force a passage. In such cases it was 
found that by raising the pile about 6 inches and allowing it to suddenly 
drop with the jet still in operation, and repeating as rapidly as possible, 
the obstruction was finally overcome ; although in some instances five or 
six hours were consumed in sinking as many feet. The deposits thus re- 
tarding the action of the jet were assumed to be clay pockets. 

The wooden piles around the pier-head were driven by a water-jet; the H-inch tube, pre- 
viously used for the iron piles, was lashed to the side of the wooden pile at the top, and held 
in place at the bottom by cleats nailed to the sides of the piles. It was not 

found necessary to curve the pipe so as to bring the jet under the center of the piles. They 
did not manifest any tendency to work over to the side on which the tube was secured. 
These piles were of pin oak * * * and were settled to a depth of 12 feet without 
the aid of a hammer; but much time would be saved by the use of a regular pile-driver in 
connection ivith the water-jet where lighter piles are used or greater depths required. 

The general principle upon which the efficiency of the jet — in sinking 
piles — depends, is the increased fluidity given to the material into which 



15 

the piles are sunk. The actual displacement of material is small ; hence 
the efficiency of the jet is greatest in clear sand, mud, or soft clay. In 
gravel, or in sand containing a large percentage of gravel, or in hard clay, 
the jet is almost useless. 

For these reasons the engine, pump, hose, and nozzle should be arranged 
to deliver large quantities of water with a moderate force, rather than 
smaller quantities with high initial velocity. In gravel, or in sand con- 
taining considerable gravel, some benefit might result from a high and 
concentrated velocity, sufficient to absolutely displace the pebbles and 
drive them from the vicinity of the pile ; but it is evident that any prac- 
ticable velocity would be powerless in gravel except for a very limited 
depth, or where circumstances favored the prompt removal of the pebbles. 

The error most frequently made in the application of the water-jet is the 
insufficient capacity of the pumps employed. In almost every application 
alluded to in this report the efficiency of the jet would have been largely 
increased if the pumps and hose supplying the jets had been of much 
larger capacity. It is also highly probable that the rude iron nozzles gene- 
rally used could, with advantage, be replaced by nozzles constructed and 
proportioned so as to give, as nearly as possible, perfect contraction to the 
fluid vein. 

In addition to the foregoing applications of the water-jet, it has been 
proposed to utilize its disturbing action oh sand, in removing bars in rivers, 
by a suitable arrangement of powerful jets attached to the hull of a vessel 
and enabling the vessel to cut its way through obstructing bars.* 

The water-jet has also been of great aid in removing snags by loosening 
the sand over deeply imbedded snags, thereby greatly facilitating their 
removal, f 

In making borings through sand, mud, or soft clay, the water-jet has 
proven of great advantage. By its aid an iron pipe can be easily and quickly 
sunk to a great depth, or until impervious material is encountered .J 

On Diamond Reef, in Xew York Harbor, the water-jet was used to 
remove deposits of clay and imbedded bowlders. § A Worthington duplex 
pump, with water cylinders 10 J inches in diameter and 10 inches stroke, 
supplied "two streams through 100 feet of 2J-inch hose, with lj-inch 
nozzles, under a pressure of 150 pounds per square inch.' 7 The nozzles, 
by the aid of attached spars, were forced downward into the material to be 
removed. "The nozzles penetrated ordinarily about 1 foot per minute to 
a depth of 5 or 6 feet, making a cavity from 3 to 5 feet in diameter ; the 
clay and sand being washed away and the stones sinking to the bottom." 
Bowlders, the largest of which were 10 feet in diameter and 7 feet in 

* Report of the Chief of Engineers, 1868, 671; '69, 310; 70, 340. 
t Report of the Chief of Engineers, 1873, 614, 616. 
t Report of the Chief of Engineers, 1874, I. 724 ; '75, I, 235 ; ; 79, 393. 
§ Report of the Chief of Engineers, 1879, 62, 382. 



16 

height, were undermined and sunk below the requisite depth, or washed 
out of the clay and removed. Where the position of the material was 
unfavorable for its ready removal by the currents, use was made of a 
wrought-iron pipe 15 inches in diameter and 64 feet in length, through 
which powerful currents were induced by means of a water-jet introduced 
in the large pipe. The object of this pipe was to carry off the material 
disintegrated by the action of another jet operating upon the material to 
be removed. By means of the induced current a velocity of 10 feet per 
second was obtained through the large pipe, which was sufficient to bring 
into the pipe sand, gravel, and stones as large as could pass the injector 
nozzle, and to project them some feet beyond its outer end. The capacity 
of the machine was estimated at from 50 to 100 tons of material per day. 
For this device and this method of excavation a patent was granted to Roy 
Stone, of New York. 

The machine has been improved by dividing the ejector jet into two 
exterior converging nozzles, placed opposite each other and entering the pipe 
at a very sharp angle, thus relieving the pipe of all obstruction to the flow 
of water and material through it ; by using a bell-mouth receiver to facili- 
tate the entrance of water into the pipe, and by arranging the loosening 
jet-nozzle and pipe so that the direction of its discharge can be changed at 
the will of the operator. 

A faithful effort has been made to incorporate in this paper all informa- 
tion obtainable, and if valuable applications of the water-jet have been 
made public and not herein incorporated, the omission is unintentional and 
not due to negligence. In several cases applications have been made which 
the users thought original, but which this paper shows had been anticipated 
by others. In such cases, while not properly originators, they are entitled 
to none the less credit for ingenuity and adaptation of resources to the 
accomplishment of ends. 

Very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

L. Y. SCHERMERHORN, 

Assistant Engineer. 

Major Henry M. Robert, 

Corps of Engineers, U. S. Army, 

Milwaukee, Wis. 



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